The cereal supply situation remains tight. Outstanding debts for wheat imports and financial difficulties of the state bread corporation have resulted in sharply reduced imports and utilization in 1995/96.
The outlook for grain production in 1996 remains satisfactory. The area sown to winter cereals, which comprise the bulk of the crop, increased by about 7 percent. Providing normal weather conditions prevail, the 1996 harvest could increase to 1.05 million tons, still a below-average crop but somewhat larger than in 1995.
The minimum requirement for cereals in 1996/97 is estimated at 1.6 million tons, including 1.1 million tons of foodgrains (400 grams per person per day for a population of 7.6 million). Against this requirement, domestic supplies of wheat, after deduction for seed and losses, is estimated at about 560 000 tons leaving an import requirement of 540 000 tons in addition to a significant deficit in feedgrains. The country�s commercial import capacity is limited and up to half of this requirement may need to be provided by a combination of loans, concessional credits and food aid.
WFP is providing supplementary food assistance to a target group of 225 000 beneficiaries, including displaced people from Nagorno Karabakh, hospital patients and inmates of social welfare institutions. The food pipeline is secured through the end of 1996. Outstanding requirements for the 1996/97 UN Appeal amount to 8 200 tons, valued at approximately U.S.$ 4.9 million.